UCLA Health, recently named as the Official Team Physicians of USA Basketball, has a roster of sports medicine and orthopaedic experts available for interview on a wide variety of topics including sports injuries, athletic performance, injury prevention and training, as well as tips on how weekend warriors can bring out their own inner athlete during the games.
The experts listed, who will all be in Paris to provide physician coverage for the men’s and women’s basketball national teams, are available by contacting Simi Singer at (310) 435-9435 or
Kristofer Jones, MD is an orthopaedic surgeon who specializes in sports-related musculoskeletal injuries of the knee, shoulder, and elbow as well as an expert in ACL repair. He is currently the Head Team Physician and Director of Orthopaedic Surgery for the Los Angeles Lakers and a Team Physician for the UCLA Bruins. He is a former intercollegiate athlete and understands the unique demands and concerns of high-performing athletes.
Sharon Hame, MD is an orthopaedic surgeon with subspecialty certification in sports medicine and has practiced orthopaedic sports medicine for more than 23 years. Her areas of research include early sports specialization, injury risk assessment and injury prevention in athletes. She is the Team Physician for UCLA Women’s Basketball and Indoor and Beach Volleyball.
Thomas Kremen, MD is an orthopaedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist. The former captain of the NCAA Division of the men’s swimming team, Kremen is also Chair of the USA Swimming’s Sports Medicine and Science Committee. His areas of research include biomechanical studies of shoulder and knee reconstruction procedures and innovative biologic therapies for osteoarthritis and other muscular skeletal injuries.
Calvin Duffaut, MD is sports medicine and primary care physician. He is a member of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine. He is a Team Physician for UCLA Athletics, the LA Sparks and the South Bay Lakers. Duffaut played college ball and is an accomplished triathlete.
Daniel Vigil, MD has joint appointments in Orthopaedic Surgery and Family Medicine and holds a Certificate of Added Qualification (CAQ) in Primary Care Sports Medicine. Vigil serves as the Associate Team Physician of the UCLA Department of Intercollegiate Athletics and is a medical consultant for USA Track and Field physician referral network. He himself is a competitive Ironman triathlete and has completed nine Ironman triathlons.
